Autumn and winter seasons, the weather gradually become cold, many older people walking often encounter leg and foot pain, chills, cramps, they often think it is cold, lack of calcium, physical weakness, physical weakness, is the reason for age! But you know what? This soreness, coldness, cramps and other phenomena may indicate a potential disease – lower extremity atherosclerosis occlusive disease, many people do not realize that this disease is at play, but mistaken for a herniated disc or calcium deficiency and long-term misdiagnosis. With the improvement of people’s living standards, changes in dietary structure and the aging of the social population, the incidence of atherosclerosis among people over 70 years of age is 15-20%, becoming one of the most common diseases among the elderly. The disease is characterized by insidious onset in the early stage, showing a repetitive pattern of “walking – pain – rest – relief”, while in the middle and late stage, severe pain or even necrosis of the affected limb can be caused by severe ischemia, and many patients have to face amputation, which seriously affects their quality of life. Especially in diabetic patients, due to the complex interaction between endocrine and metabolic dysfunction, peripheral neuropathy, microvascular lesions, and macrovascular lesions, atherosclerotic occlusive disease occurs more often in diabetic patients than in those without diabetes, and atherosclerosis occurs early and to a severe degree. In the early stage of the disease, the need for oxygen in the muscles of the lower limbs increases when the patient walks, so he or she is in a relatively hypoxic state, at which time anaerobic metabolism occurs, generating lactic acid and other metabolites to stimulate the nerves and the soreness of the affected limbs, especially the calf muscles. At this point if the patient upright or sit down for a moment, the soreness can disappear or ease, but then walk a certain distance after the pain will be aggravated, so repeatedly intermittent, the onlookers see, this person walking stop, seems a bit inexplicable. This is called “intermittent claudication”. As the disease progresses, the more severe the narrowing of the artery, the shorter the walking distance the patient can tolerate, until finally he or she loses the ability to walk. At the end of the disease, the artery is even completely occluded, then even at rest the limb is in a state of severe ischemia, resulting in severe pain, called “resting pain”, especially at night, the symptoms are serious, the patient can not sleep because of severe pain, often sitting all night holding the knee bent, causing great pain. At the same time, the skin and muscle tissue become ischemic and necrotic, and eventually the affected limb, especially the toe, becomes ulcerated or blackened and gangrenous, especially in patients with combined diabetes, which is more likely to become wet gangrene and secondary infection, and in severe cases, systemic toxic symptoms. It is worth noting that the early stage of intermittent claudication is only detected by the patient himself, and it can be overlooked by a slight lack of attention, mistaking it for age or physical strength problems. As a reminder, the appearance of such symptoms must not be self-diagnosed and self-medicated, which on the one hand will delay the condition and the timing of treatment, and on the other hand, the abuse of drugs can be harmful to the body. Therefore, once this symptom is found, it is best to go to a hospital with vascular surgery specialty to confirm the diagnosis through scientific examination means. Such as non-invasive lower limb blood flow analyzer, lower limb artery ultrasound, as well as CTA, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), etc., these tests can help determine the presence of limb artery stenosis and occlusion. Therefore, for middle-aged and elderly people, especially diabetic patients with leg and foot pain, coldness, cramps, and abnormal changes in skin color, temperature, and sensation of the foot, it is important to quit smoking and drinking, keep the affected limbs warm, avoid burns and trauma, etc. And please come to the vascular surgery department in time to exclude the common disease of vascular surgery – atherosclerosis occlusive disease.